


A Web of Deceit

by DancingPiratess



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: AU, F/M, a bit of angst, shameless fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-26
Updated: 2018-01-26
Packaged: 2019-03-09 16:49:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13485699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DancingPiratess/pseuds/DancingPiratess
Summary: Clint finds Natasha kissing Bruce Banner at the farm. He confronts her





	1. A Web is Spun

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this ages ago and stumbled across it again. Now, a year or two later, I’ve finally finished it. The occasion being a friend’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Hawky!
> 
> For the purposes of this story, Laura will be Clint’s sister. Personally, I think that’s a much better fit. 
> 
> Disclaimer: Obviously I don’t own any of the characters. They belong to Marvel

Sometimes he really wished he could look into her head, see what she was feeling in order to understand the enigma she was. Especially at times like these when he couldn't understand anything at all. Nothing what so ever.

He dragged her across the lawn into the barn. She didn’t resists, she simply let herself get dragged along by Clint. Banner’s confused shouts could be heard. Both of them ignored him. Angrily, he threw the barn door shut. A part of him wanted her to jump at the loud noise, however her training made her stand as still as a rock. Controlled was the only way to describe it.

After taking a brief moment to compose himself, the words burst forth more violently than he had hoped: "Why did you kiss Banner?"

"Why do you care?" She retorted.

"I don't" he answered. Even he could tell that there was no truth behind it. Which meant she could as well.

She knew him inside out. He thought that had to count for something. She held his gaze for several more moments. Her eyes dropped to the floor. She lost. Inside Natasha raged an inner turmoil. To tell or not to tell. He could read it in her body.

"He's the weakest link" she finally said tonelessly. She redirected her gaze back to his. Her mouth was set, conveying her defiance. Clint didn't reply. It was her turn to do the talking. "Banner was always a liability. His alliance with us is fickle. I decided to give him an incentive to stay" she said. How could she look this indifferent while breaking his heart?

“What about Tony?”

“Please” she said with a scoff “Tony is just as fickle but he has Pepper to keep him here”

Getting back to the topic he asked a question. One that was safe, he hoped: "It's all a charade?" Clint asked, feeling a mixture of relief and pain.

"Mental manipulation, I prefer to call it" she replied, the smallest of smiles creeping around the corners of her mouth. All Clint could do was stare. "My specialty" she added, quirking one of her eyebrows. She looked downright cunning and calculating.

Clint had never been afraid of Tasha. Intimidated, yes. For the first time ever, her face filled him with dread. She held his heart in the palm of her hand and nothing could and would stop her from crushing it if she chose to. He felt so very vulnerable.

A question spooked around Clint's head, one he did not dare to ask... Not yet at least. "How long will this charade continue?" He asked, refusing to call it anything else.

"As long as necessary" Nat said without a trace of emotion.

"I don't think it'll ever end" Clint said. "There will always be another bad guy, another villain, another... Monster"

"Besides me, you mean?" She said in an attempt to diffuse the tension. 

"You're not a monster" he said, the words slipping out. For the first time during that conversation, her mask slipped. A look of surprise flashed across it before she could rearrange her features.

"It sure feels that way sometimes" she mumbled under her breath. 

Clint didn't comment. He considered talking her out of those kinds of thoughts, as he often had. Currently, however, he could not muster the strength. He had pulled her out of the dark places so often. Held her and soothed her when the bad dreams came. Didn’t that count for something?

Considering the length of their alliance, Clint briefly wondered if she would be offended by his question. The fact that he didn’t know saddened him and showed him that asking said question, would be important, if not vital.

He was trying to gather the courage to ask the question that his head was screaming at him. If he asked now, he had a shot of getting an answer. He inhaled loudly, the sound reverberating the air.

"How do I know you're not manipulating me?" He asked, finally. The question filled the room, expanding until it almost suffocated them both. Natasha stood perfectly still, not a single muscle in motion. He wasn't even sure if she was breathing. Or perhaps it was him who wasn't.

"You don't" she replied, breaking the spell over them.


	2. A Web of Words

"I don't believe you" Clint said. It sounded like an accusation. "I know what we have, Tasha. I know what we could have" the desperation was creeping into his voice. Oh, how he hated having to plead with her.

"Clint" she sounded so tired. So pained.

"Tasha" he said, not wanting to hear her use that tone. 

A part of her wanted to run out the barn, into the woods, far away. Away from all of this away from _him_.

Another part of her wanted to grab Clint’s hand and take off running with him. He was right. She hated when he was. Them against the world, just like Budapest. The memories almost brought a smile to her face. Almost.

The rational part of her brain, the one she had been taught to listen to, always told her what had to be done. For the sake of the team, she had to go through with her scheme. She really wished that Clint wouldn’t find out until much, much later.

“Clint” she said, interrupting whatever tangent he had been on until that moment. He shut up. Pinned her down with his gaze. She hated when he looked at her like that.

“I know” she said with a sigh. “I know what we have and I know what we could” She had stepped closer to him, her right hand resting on his heart. It beat steadily, though a little fast. Her presence, she assumed.

He placed a hand over hers, they fit together so perfectly, both of them equally calloused. She felt herself become weak. With the last amount of willpower, she extracted her hand. Unfortunately for her, he hung on. Their hands dangled together, intertwined.

“It’s my duty” She said.

“You don’t have a duty to anyone but yourself anymore” Clint said harshly, attempting to extract his hand from hers. This time, she hung on.

“It might appear that way” she said gently. She took her empty hand and gently ran it through his hair in an attempt to soothe him. “I have a duty to this team” she said with a sigh.

Clint gave her a last look, full of a kaleidoscope of emotions. Hurt, Betrayal, Fear. Then he left. Nat felt her legs give out and ungracefully, she tumbled down to the hay covered floor. Kneeling, she curled up, her hands caught up in her fiery hair.

She stayed frozen in that position until a noise startled her. Steve leaned against the closed door, arms crossed, scrutinizing her.

There was no point in concealing her emotional state. Even if he hadn’t seen her despair only moments earlier, he knew her well enough. Not as well as Clint, she noted absently.

“Nat” Steve said impossibly gently in that tone of voice she hated. It made her feel so fragile. “You don’t need to go through with this. We’ll find another way”

“You should at least buy Banner dinner first” Natasha cracked. “Steve, we’ve spent so much time building up this house of cards. It would be foolish to let it topple now”

Steve looked reluctant, pushing away from the door and pacing "Remember what you told me when you found out?" Natasha asked, pinning Steve down with her gaze. He scowls, his own words coming back to bite him.

"I told you to do what was necessary" she nods, knowing that she had him.

"That's what I'm doing" She moved towards the door, determined. Her mask had cracked briefly, it wouldn’t again.

“Nat?”

“Yes?”

“Don’t get in too deep”

“Roger that”


	3. A Woven Web

Steve caught her with Clint. She was almost surprised it hadn’t happened sooner, considering how small the ranch is. It felt like they’re all sitting on top of each other, suffocating.

It hadn’t even been that bad. They were alone in the kitchen, preparing lunch. Even Clint’s sister wasn’t around for once. A lingering touch from her, an enamored look from him. Impossible to spot unless someone was looking for it. Like Steve clearly was.

               “Nat, what the hell are you doing?” Steve whispered furiously as charging toward them “This is not what we discussed! You cannot go frolicking around with other men!”

“Seriously, dude, frolicking? How old are you? 80?” Clint intervened.

“95” Cap replied, not even glancing at Clint.

Struck with a sudden realization, Clint turned to Steve. “Hang on” grasping the other man’s shoulder “You _know?!_ ” He asked incredulously. Steve nodded, not elaborating. Realizing that he wouldn’t get anywhere, he turned to Tasha.

“He is in on this crazy scheme of yours?”

She nodded. “I ran it by him. He’s our captain after all” Steve rolled his eyes but didn’t object “And I’ll have you know, I wasn’t ‘frolicking’!” she added.

“And you agreed to this?” Clint asked once again regarding Steve.

“It’s not a bad plan. We need him”

“Good thing you got someone else to do your dirty work for you” Clint said harshly. Steve started at him, cutting an impressive form even without his shield.

“Enough” Nat said, placing a hand against his formidable chest. He looked at her annoyed, but backed off anyway.

“Give us a moment, Barton” Steve said, looking over Nat’s head. She turned to him, glaring at him. Not wanting to drag it out, she gave Clint a light push, letting him know that it was okay.

The door closed behind Clint with a gentle whisper. She could feel Steve’s eyes on her, but she kept her gaze fixed on the ground.

"Natasha, you have to end it" Steve commanded.

Her head snapped up, her glare pinning him in place "You might be a captain, but I sure as hell ain't listening to your orders" the tension in the room was palpable. Any moment one of them would pounce on the other.

Steve broke away from her gaze, unwilling to fight her. "Language" he muttered weakly. 

Natasha didn't react much though he could've sworn he saw the smallest of smiles on her face. "I've got it under control, Rogers" she said forcefully. It was as much for her as it was for him.

"Be careful, Romanoff" he said, hating to see her this torn.


	4. A Web of Lies

Clint caught up with her as she left the bathroom after her nightly routine. The hot shower had helped her feel more centered again, it had washed away her weariness, for now.

Humming softly, she scrunched her hair with a towel as she exited the bathroom. Wrapped firmly in a cozy robe, she tapped across the hallway, her bare feet barely making a sound on the hardwood floor.

A beam of light crawled across her toes as a door opened. Without saying anything, Clint grasped her wrist, pulling her into the warmly lit bedroom. The door closed behind her as he pushed her back against it, boxing her in.

She simply looked at him, waiting to see what he would do. A blazing look was in his eyes. Expectantly, Natasha tilted her head upward. With only a moment’s hesitation, Clint’s lips met hers.

His hand tangled in her hair and a warmth spread through her chest. She deepened the kiss. The damp towel slipped from her slack hand, before it traveled upward to grab his shoulder.

Clint broke away, resting his forehead against hers. “Tasha, I love you. Can’t you see that?” he looked so pained, she could hardly bear it.

Without responding, she bent down to retrieve the towel. Hiding her face, she left the room. She pulled the door shut behind herself. She hunched forward like she had been punched in the stomach, reeling from Clint’s confession.

Taking a few quick steps, she knocked on the door of the one person who’d be able to help her make sense of this.

The door opened, once again bathing her in light. “Steve?” she asked, her voice breaking. He took in her red rimmed eyes for only a moment before ushering her inside. Without asking any questions, he wrapped her in his strong arms.

Natasha trembled in his arms, allowed everything to overwhelm her for a count of five. Then, she withdrew.

Steve still didn’t say anything, he simply gave her an expectant look as he sat down on the edge of the bed. Natasha gathered her thoughts, unsure where to start.

“I’m in over my head” She finally said, pacing like a caged cat. For the first time ever, Steve heard raw desperation in her voice. “Clint… Clint told me he loves me” her hands raked through her damp hair, her fingers getting caught up in the tangles.

“Do you love him?” Steve asked. She stopped in her tracks.

“I don’t know” agitatedly, she rubbed her hands over her face “I’ve never let myself think about it… maybe?”

“You have to stop whatever you’re doing with Banner then” Steve said, softly.

“I can’t” she whispered.

"You have to tell Banner the truth. He deserves that much" Steve persisted

"The truth is a matter of circumstance" She deadpanned.

“Not all things to all people at all time?” Steve scoffed “Please! You cannot think that you are telling Banner any form of the truth”

“I…” she trailed off “it could be”

“But it’s not” Steve rubbed the back of his neck dejectedly “Look, Nat, I’m not trying to tell you what to do. But I want to see you be happy. You deserve to be happy, you’re _allowed_ to be happy”

Nat gave him a grateful look. Softly, she kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you” she simply said, feeling more hopeful.

“You’ll tell him?” Steve asked as she left.

Instead of answering, she simply gave him a mysterious smile.


	5. A Web Unraveled

She hadn’t slept well, having been up tossing and turning. Her own pale face greeted her in the mirror, the dark circles obvious under her eyes. She knew what she had to do. For once, she would do something for herself.

The Avengers were mostly gathered around the breakfast table. She could hear Thor’s laughter booming from the kitchen as he helped Laura with the cooking. For a moment, she allowed herself to take in the scene.

“Bruce” she said softly, alerting people of her presence. Clint’s coffee went down the wrong pipe as he threw her a questioning look. Cap suppressed a cautious smile, trying to catch her eye. She kept her eyes fixed on Banner though.

He rose, uncertain what to expect. She could tell from his body language. She led him outside, toward the barn.

She considered how to brace the topic. “You’ve always been a liability” she said, her back turned to him.

“I’m sorry?” Whatever Banner had been expecting, it clearly hadn’t been this.

“The last few months… I’ve been giving you an _incentive_ to stay” she finally faced him “and I’m sorry for deceiving you. It became so much bigger than I thought it would. Too many people got involved”

“Natasha…”

“I’m done deceiving you. I’m done constantly taking one’s for the team. It’s my turn to be happy”

“I should’ve known. I’ve been a fool” Banner bit out, trembling with an unidentifiable emotion.

Without meaning to, she backed away uncertainly. Shuddering with repressed emotion, Banner left the barn. Natasha ran after him, watching him take off towards the woods. For a moment, she felt a sting of remorse.

Then she realized what she had done. And what kind of freedom it had granted her. Finally, it was her turn. And suddenly she couldn’t wait another moment. She took off towards the house running.

“Clint” she called out. All she needed right now was his arms. To feel safe. She opened the door so enthusiastically, she nearly ripped it off its hinges. He was still sitting at the table, surrounded by everyone. She didn’t care.

“Tasha?” he asked, putting down his newspaper as he rose.

She rushed into his embrace “I love you” the words finally rushed out of her like a tidal wave. She didn’t bother listening to the others’ reactions. It was just her and Clint.

A wide smile appeared on Clint’s face. He briefly cupped her face, running his thumb across her cheekbone for a heartbeat.  

He pulled out a chair for her and took her hand “Take a seat” he simply said. She complied.

She had burned some bridges and they had a lot to figure out. But for now, she would just have breakfast with the man she loved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very cheesy ending, I know! Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed!


End file.
